N Fold
by Andhera
Summary: Have you ever had a song stuck in your head, but not remembered the name to it? And then, suddenly, it comes back to haunt you, over and over, never leaving you alone? Well, people aren't much different, as Kai is slowly discovering... KaRe
1. 0

This was a challenge from _Kameko-chan_ on _beyblade__ yaoi_ in LJ. Well, since the challenge is from a yaoi community, you can guess the nature of this plot. _Yaoi_ means a homosexual relationship between two males. It's more than friendship people, so if you get disgusted by such affairs take the time to push the back button

Well, for those still here, there's only two more things. This would be my first try, so if I go wrong, correct me please. Lastly, the primary pairing will be either Kai/Rei or Tala/Kai/Rei. I'm not completely sure yet. That's about it.

* * *

Everything he feared, till this day, stood in front of him; snow and ice. He would realize that these two elements were the least of his worries yet to come. Maybe not now, but he was only three at the time. He had, yet, to live for a long, long time. That would become his greatest fear. 

He trembled.

But, it wasn't because of the nauseating fear in the pit of his stomach. No, for now he was only cold. He checked the metallic red zipper of his plush jacket; it wouldn't go any higher. Subconsciously, his gloved arms tightened around his tiny body. A light shiver parted his lips, releasing a small puff of white mist.

"Go on Kai! There's nothing to worry about sweetie. It's only a sheet of frozen water. Look at all the other people out there having fun." A tall woman walked up behind him, kneeling to meet his eye. An iridescent stream laughter ran through their nurturing, crimson depths.

"But, Mommy, it's so shi-pper-ie…" He cried, grasping onto the hem of the long, form-fitting coat which adorned her body perfectly.

"Slippery, Kai; and of course ice will be slippery. It's the ice's job. See, fire must be passionate and hot, while ice, its opposite, must be slippery and cold." The mother chuckled.

"Really? But won't it hurt if I fall?" Kai looked up in curiosity.

"Yes, little Kai, it will hurt; but mommy will be here to take the pain away… always." She smiled down upon him, picking him up in her arms.

"Aw-ways…? What is that?" Fine lines of confusion were visible on the toddler's forehead.

"Always means forever, darling. Mommy is going to be right here, forever." She walked towards the expanse of smooth ice which was studded with skating figures.

She walked away from the shoreline, towards the center, and set Kai down in the middle of a crowd. People, twice the boy's height, just whizzed past him, intimidating him.

"Now Kai," she said, seriously, holding onto his shoulder, "…take care of yourself, all right? I have to go now."

With that, she walked away from her son. He stood there, wobbling on his new, white skates, watching her fade away into the numbing cold of the _snog_ – which was what he named the deadly combination of snow and fog.

"Mommy…" He whispered, afraid to speak loudly incase the people around him would adopt hatred towards him.

So, he did the next best thing he knew; he put one foot in front of the other and skated, just like his mother had said. She'd be proud. But, she wasn't there to look over him. She'd be on the shore, right? It's just that the _snog_ is too thick to see through.

He took a few confident strides, allowing the fierce wind to blow at his face. It was, in its own unique way, soothing. Soon, he glided across the surface with ease. He smiled to himself, taking great pride over his accomplishment. He'd have a story to tell his mother, while they sat by the fireplace and sipped on hot chocolate.

He closed his eyes, twirled on one foot, and skidded to a halt. Turning, he returned to the place where the blade of his left skate had left a circular imprint. There it was; the proof in front of his very own eyes. He, Kai - the small, meek Hiwatari child – had twirled on his worst fear, scarring it. Reaching down, his gloved hand bunched together the loose powered ice along the rim of the circle. This was the proof he needed to convince his beautiful mother. Not that she'd ever doubt his word.

"Hi, little boy! I'm Shizuka," A girl, twice his age, halted in front of him and smiled warmly, "Are you lost?"

Kai, recalling the times his mother told him to stay away from strangers, shyly shook his head. She looked at him – his eyes – for a few moments, mystified. She was reeled in by the innocence and purity of the deep crimson orbs. Then, finding her senses, she snapped back to frigid reality.

"Oh, I, I have to go. I, I'll, uh, see you around… uh, yeah," She stuttered, stumbling away from him as if he were a wild, dangerous criminal. Finally, she tore his gaze from him, and raced away towards the shore.

He attempted to chase her.

He slipped…

…fell.

A thin wall of tears built up behind his lashes, while his knees throbbed with pain. He doubled over, trying desperately to clutch the ice, hoping to find the comforting pleats of his mother favorite skirt.

"Hey, is you okay?" A soft, concern voice spoke in broken syllables.

"N, no…" He replied, small traces of tears freezing on his face.

"Why is you crying?" The stranger asked, brushing away the crystallized shards of tears from his face.

"It hurts…" Kai replied, hugging his knees.

"Then get up!" The other beamed.

"No!" Slate-blue bangs shook vigorously, following the shaking head.

"Why?" Curiosity dominated the once-soothing tone.

"Because, Mommy said she will come take away the pain away---"

"Always…"

For the first time, Kai gathered the courage to look up at this friendly stranger. "H, how you know?"

"My mommy said that too!" He said happily, "Me sit with you? Wait with you?"

"Okay!" The naïve phoenix tilted his head to one side in agreement.

"Me, Rei Kon!" The raven haired boy smiled.

"My name Kai…" he countered shyly.

Both three year olds sat together in the middle of the rink, as they waited for Mrs. Hiwatari's arrival. They chattered happily about everything from _The Knights of the Zodiac_ to the harmony of all the natural elements. Hours passed with their cheery banter; first one, then two, then three…

"Rei-rei… what's that over there?" Kai asked, breaking a whole eight seconds of silence.

"Two big people beybattling!" The said tiger said.

"Huh?"

"You no hear of beyblading?" Rei questioned enthusiastically.

"Nuh-huh..." Kai looked nervous, as if he were in the spotlight on '_Who wants to be a millionaire'_.

"Oh, No worry Kai-chan! It just a game. See there small top which big people use to beybattle." He confirmed his statement by pointing to a spinning top in the ice arena.

From where he was sitting, Kai could see the two tops colliding violently very second. "Top is beyblade?"

"Yup!" Rei grinned, his golden eyes traced on Kai's innocent face, "Kai-chan got it."

To this, Kai giggled. "Rei-rei teach Kai-chan well," He said, speaking of them in third person. He even pointed to the persons in question to emphasize his point.

"Kai-chan," Molten gold eyes turned serious, "You sure that mommy said she come?"

"She say, mommy be here to take pain away… aw-ways." He struggled to pronounce the synonym of forever.

"My mommy say that too…"

Rei's sentence was interrupted by an explosion from the direction of the arena. They turned to see puffs of smoke rise from the dish, burning cinders fluttering about amidst the grey wisps. As soon as Rei saw this, he buried his face into Kai's coat, clutching onto the boy tightly.

"Rei-rei, what wrong?" Kai asked, hugging his new-found friend comfortingly, "It just that top spin game… No be scared!"

"My mommy said that too," he whispered softly, "But she lie… She gone now. She dead."

Kai was shocked by the reality of the statement. It was beyond his understanding, how anyone could hurt such an amazing person. He silently vowed, when he died, that he would personally take care of Rei's mother for lying and breaking _his_ Rei-rei's heart. This lack of understanding caused him to tighten his grip around Rei's shoulders.

"Rei no be sad! I here with you." Rei looked up in awe straight into his eyes. Like Shizuka, he couldn't help but be pulled into their depth.

"But…"

"I no promise forever, but I here now. I can no promise that I no die, like Rei-rei's mommy. But, I alive now. So, I be Rei-rei's friend!" Kai said fiercely.

He struggled to get on his feet. He stood with his arms hanging loosely on his waist. Then, confidently, he held out one hand to Rei.

"So, you be my friend?"

"Y, yes," the amber-eyes child riposted, still entranced by his eyes.

They just stood holding each others' hand, in a loose hand-shake… without the _shake _part of it. Time stood still – serene and tranquil – with the duo.

"REI!" a shout snapped both of them out of their trance.

"Uh-oh… I go now. Angel calling."

"What? Rei-rei die?"

"No Kai-chan. Angel is person who adopt me." Rei explained, embarrassed.

"Oh, okay. Bye, Rei-rei… friend…" Kai smiled, hugging him one final time, before turning to leave.

"Kai-chan…" He stopped and turned to tend to the call.

There he saw Rei standing, his long knee length hair fluttering, loose, in the wind. In his hand, he held a coarse piece of white cloth, bundled up.

"Remember me, Kai-chan." Rei hastily thrust the bundle into his hands, and leaned forward to place a kiss on his cheek. He miscalculated a little; instead his lips lingered atop Kai's.

It was simply an innocent gesture of friendship to the three year olds.

"See you, Rei-rei," Kai said, smiling.

"Bye, Kai-chan…" Rei skated away, not turning back until he was out of the vicinity of the hypnotic crimson eyes he trusted.

Kai smiled. He'd never really felt this… happy… ever. He was giddy, almost drunk, with this quixotic emotion. He took out the powdery ice from his pocket. He held it out to the _snog_, letting the wind carry it away. Who wanted to talk about his small twirl? Now he had even more to tell his mother.

But mommy never came back.

Instead, a tall, broad man came to get him. He called himself Voltaire. He called little Kai Hiwatari, grandson. Since the first look into his eyes, Voltaire knew his grandson would redefine the meaning of excellence. He'd become the perfect warrior. And when the grandson saw his elderly relative, he rushed and tackled the man in a hug. He was just glad someone came to take him out of the cold wind.

But, little did he know… this was merely the commencement of a long era of glacial suffering.

* * *

Okay, so there was a lot of baby-talk. I'm not that bad with grammar. But I assumed three year olds converse like that. Meh… 

Thanks for reading, and just a teensy fact: I always appreciate feedback :D


	2. I

Wow, I didn't expect such a great response to this. It seems I'm on the right track. Thank you to all of you who reviewed. I think this is the quickest update I've made so far. All thanks to you guys. glomps and hands out beyblade plushies

Okay, just so that I don't confuse you, **please read this**. The prologue was not a memory. It was written in present tense. This chapter skips time. Kai and the other are 15, and Zeo is 14. Also, the first part is in Kai's POV, and after the '-----' it resumes normal POV.

**Disclaimer**: I no own, you no sue. No Dev isn't mine either. She's a fellow author and nice friend. Look up Devlinn Reiko-sama. Awesome author. Rest of the legalities and formalities can be found on my bio.

Enough of me…

* * *

"Aka, get your fat ass off the mattress. It has had to bear your weight for 9 whole hours. Pity it, you over-weighted moron." This is not what I need first thing in the morning. Here I am, waking up one of the most annoying, happy-go-lucky, brat when I could be doing much more productive things like leaning against walls and frowning. 

"Two more minutes Kai, just two… please…" He heard him whine. Who in the name of beyblading told you to party so hard last night? Not that I went easy on myself either. The moron had to drag me to the after-dark school dance. Everything except the pounding music is a blur. Which could be a bad thing. Okay, new approach…

"Okay, let me put it this way. Get out of bed now, or else…" Maybe if I threaten him he'll wake up. Then again, he'd strip himself naked and dance with monkeys if I let him sleep for another half hour.

"Do I want to ask… _or_ what?" We have this cute conversation every morning. I find a different way to break hell loose on his life every time. It's fun. A game called: I spy with my little eye, a way to ruin Aka's life.

"I'll hang you upside down from the cafeteria ceiling, and have you wearing nothing but those adorable, _pink_ Sailor Moon boxers you have,"

That should just about do it. I give him a total of three minute before he's ready.

"How'd you know about that?" A scream echoes from the washroom. I guess he knows that his secret life isn't so… secretive anymore.

3… 2… 1… Told you he'd make it. So, here I stand, fifteen minutes before school starts looking at my best friend rake his fingers through that mop of blue on his head. Yeah, Aka, more popularly Takao Kinomiya, is my best friend. Of course, I'd fall into a pit of thorns, be bitten by snakes and kiss a camel's ass before I say that out loud. But, no harm in thinking so.

"I live here, I don't sleep all the time, I am aware of things that go on around me, Grandpa loves gossiping and I was there when you were _modeling_ in them," I try to finish in one breath, stressing the word modeling. That's one of the better things about Aka. He likes to pretend he's a male superstar. Well, don't get me wrong, he has the body, but this _is_ Takao. He'd fall flat on his face every two steps.

"Oh, well, Usagi relates to pink, it's not my fault. And she is damned sexy!" Aww, he's defending himself. Isn't that adorable. But he didn't deny the modeling part. Maybe I should buy a camcorder and record all these precious moments. Blackmail might be a good way to wake him in the morning. I mean, he just called a flirty, stupid meatball-headed ditz sexy. Hell, if I can't blackmail him, I can at least bug him about it.

"And what better place to immortalize this _sexy_ cartoon character than your boxers." This should work out to be an interesting conversation. I don't want to know what he dreams about, _ever_, but nobody said I can't enjoy making him hang on the last nerve of his non-existent sanity. Embarrassing him is one of my favorite pastimes.

"Well, she's close to me that way!" He grinned. Damn, he was getting better at avoiding my annoyance; and rebutting it. Damn him. "…very, very close! Especially to---," Okay, _no_! Too much info.

"Yes, Aka, I am fully aware of the male anatomy, and I own many pairs of boxers too. I don't need you to give me a one-on-one sex lesson; especially when it involves you, a cartoon female, and pink boxers. Spare me." Yes, do. Oh shit, ten minutes to school. Damn you Takao, we're going to be late.

"Kai! Wait up!" Okay, fine. Maybe grabbing him and sprinting out the door wasn't the best thing to do. He's not much of an athlete. Of course, if you tell that to his face he'd beat every last scrap of shit out of you. When he's pissed, he intimidates even me; another thing that I will never ever mention out loud.

"Hey, look that snow's melting." He panted, trying to make small talk. It usually works. I think he's the only guy who can talk to me without being introduced to my fist. And he's actually waiting for an answer to that statement.

"And I never would've figured that out without your brilliant statement. Thank you _Takao_." Dry sarcasm is one of my favorite weapons. Looking back, I see him stumbling behind me, cling desperately onto my arm. Takao, hanging onto my arm for dear life as he almost flew behind me, was so hilarious that I felt like dropping down and laughing. Of course, I have my bad-ass Kai Hiwatari to uphold.

"What? Are you practicing for the part of Scrooge in the Christmas play." He counters. School's in sight. This conversation has to end. If those savage, pink-loving girls find out that I can talk… well, let's jut say once they are done with me, I will not be a pretty sight.

"Of course, it's only nine months away. If I don't practice some other anti-social bastard will get it." I say firmly, slowing down. He'd learnt the various tones of my apparent monotonous voice. He could tell when I was happy, sad, pissed or flustered… not that _I_ am every flustered or anything.

"Okay, what's up? You're being more of an asshole than usual. So, either pretend that life is perfect or spill it. You can't leave me like this," Aka said, knowing well that this was the perfect time to get killed. He had guts. Too bad his brain was missing.

"Leave you? You're sounding like a desperate boyfriend." I laugh. He blushes, the embarrassment showing bright red on his cheeks.

"Okay, Ew! No, you're like my bro, dude! I can't handle the fact that you're keeping secrets from _me_. I'm your little imouto!" He is quite the sight when frustration dominates his features. I, personally, find myself torn between pity and laughter.

So I laugh it off; shrug; pretend I'm somewhat human. "What secrets? What do you want to know about me?"

"Uh," he started brilliantly, "well, look, it's the school!" He pointed in mock excitement. He knew that I knew he was only trying to save his dignity.

"And another brilliant comment by the great Aka-imouto." The hidden phoenix remarked, entering the school grounds.

"Did you just call Takao, Aka-imouto, Kai?" Shit, that scared me. Damn that blonde. Max has this sly way of sneaking up on people. Not only that, he's like a fluffy ball of cheerfulness. Nothing, and I mean _nothing_, can get him down. He's too optimistic for reality, but he survives. It's annoying and refreshing all at once.

"Yeah, and if you tell _any_one, I'll take great pleasure in removing your head from your shoulders." I say, stalking away. I can hear him murmur something like, "Aww, he _is_ human!" to Aka.

I swear on my scarf, if that bubbly blonde spills this to _any_one else, I will have his life. I will take great, sadistic pleasure in watching him roast over a barbecue fire. After hearing Takao voice my threat, I walk away, hoping, praying wishing that---

"Hey Kai!" I was in the middle praying lighting would hit you, damn it! I fear your sugary voice with my every breath. You have no idea how many times you have pounced on me, hugged me and otherwise lavished me with unwanted attention. Of course, my mental conversation is not reaching her ears.

So, with a desperate prayer that a hole in the ground will swallow her, I nod to acknowledge her presence.

"Hey Miriam." This is where I jump with glee, do back flips and thank Max for saving my butt, right? Well, let's just settle for walking away. The bell's rung either way. The wonderful world of pi, trig, quads and other worthless math awaits me. So, mindlessly, I drift away from the one-sided romance going on between Max and Miriam.

Yes, me, heartless asshole extrodinaire, knows when someone has a crush. Especially when this someone is the every happy, ball of cotton candy that is my best friend's, best friend. The equation is very simple: Max idea of perfection Miriam. I actually feel sorry for the guy. Miriam is so hung on the sexiness factor that she fails to see how lovelorn the boy is. I, much to my regret, am her favorite target.

I should give the little guy a little advice sometime. I'm apparently am _woman's man_. How, is way beyond me. I'm stubborn, stuck up, a jerk, and the complete opposite of candies and flowers. Girls are just odd that way.

"Yeah, they are." Someone whispered from behind me. That would be Zeo, the only tolerable guy younger than me. He idolizes Aka… to the point that he probably has a secret closet somewhere worshiping him. I'd call it love, but it seems too juvenile. I don't think Aka has ever taken Zeo for more than a little brother.

"I didn't realize I said that out loud." I say, continuing the conversation. He's probably one of the only people who I can talk to comfortably.

"Then you should be more careful, shouldn't you." He teases. Unwillingly, a light smirk reaches my lips.

"Why? Do you think I'm harboring secrets to world domination?"

"You're past isn't one of the most public things. You might want to keep it secret." He says knowingly. I guess that's why I like the kid so much. He comes from a background which he prefers to keep secret. He knows how to respect privacy.

"Of course, if you _do_ have secret plans for world domination, I want in." He giggles. We break into a slow paced walk. Our conversation drifted from global power, to Miriam, to the peppermint-pistachio color of Zeo's long braided hair.

With every word, I found myself unveiling more of his darkened past. It seemed that we had much more in common than I'd first thought. Maybe I wasn't all alone in this world… maybe there are people who know what it feels like to be broken and betrayed. I walked Zeo to his class, although I stopped listening to his voice a long time ago.

By the time I'd reached my desk, I was drowning in my ocean of grey… a void in my mind allocated for the memories that will never fade.

* * *

Sunlight poured through the windows like rain, pooling in puddles of bright yellowish light. The teacher's dreary lecture was interrupted occasionally by soft chirps. Parabolas, Cartesian quadrants and axis of symmetry filled the air dulling out the vibrant spring mood.

"Class, write down this equation. This is the quadratic equation. Now, we---" The teacher was interrupted by a brisk knock on the door. The slim, fragile frame of the principal seeped through the translucent door, creating a petite, brittle silhouette.

"Okay, open your books to page 145 and read. Your homework is to finish all the questions on 147. You should be done reading in class, maybe even start on the homework. I'll be right back." With that, the teacher stepped out to greet the principal.

Everyone in class started reading. A few whispers went around, a few predicting the reasons for the principal to call on the Ms. Tsumiyo, their teacher, and some begging for help on _evil_ quadratic problems.

Only one boy sat by himself in the far corner of the classroom, writing down elaborate mathematics in a notebook. His slate bangs fell delicately into his garnet eyes, as he quickly solved each problem quickly. He was almost done by the time the teacher re-entered the classroom.

"Class, shhh…" She said upon entering, "As you all saw, the principal was just here. We are having a new student in this class."

Loud whispers sprang about as soon as she finished her sentence.

"I know it's a bit late for anyone new, but you will be very nice to him. Understood." She sternly raised her voiceover the whispers.

Getting an affirmative groan in response, she beckoned the new student to enter.

"Class this is… well, why don't you introduce yourself, I'll get you the worksheets and a text book." With that Ms. Tsumiyo smiled at the nervous, raven-haired boy in front of her and rushed out of the class once more.

"Hi, I'm Rei Kon…" He said nervously, her amber eyes sweeping the classroom for an empty seat. He found one, and walked towards it, hesitantly.

"Hey Rei! Don't worry, we don't bite all that much." Takao screamed from his end of the class. A few giggles scattered around the room. Rei smiled at the navy-eyed boy before continuing towards the empty seat.

"Um, is anyone sitting here?" he asked the boy in front of him. While he waited for an answer, he took in everything about the boy, his contrasting bye hair, his well-toned body, the white scarf wrapped around his neck, everything. The thing that struck him the most were the azure triangles on his face. They gave him a look of confidence, but gave him a soft, comforting, paranoid look at the same time.

"Uh," Rei repeated.

"Don't bother with him. Yeah, you can sit here, no one else is." A girl with waist length hair said, gesturing towards the chair.

"Thanks." Rei smiled at the girl, taking a seat.

She turned to face him. "Hey, I'm Dev." She introduced, offering a shy smile. Straight blue hair fell till her waist, subtle neon green highlights accentuating various strips of the blue mass. Friendly cyan eyes greeted him, from behind her long bangs. A sunshine yellow tank top, covered with an unzipped, pastel orange vest adorned the top of her lean body, while beige shorts and a crème belt hung off her waist. Stripped yellow-orange glove hid her hands, exposing just the finger tips. Bright yellow, knee-length boots were laced up her calf. A black band around her right thigh completed the look.

"Hey, what's up with him?" he asked, gesturing towards the hostile boy behind him.

"Oh, him. He probably didn't even hear you. He has his work phase, in which no one can break his concentration. But, he's not much of a personality. Most of the time he acts like he has a polar ice cap stuck up hiss ass." She said distastefully.

"Not a favorite is he?" Rei propped his elbows up on the desk and rested his chin on his palms.

"He likes to intimidate people. He has this _get the hell away from me_ vibe going on." She said, tucking a clump of her hair behind her ear.

"Really? What his name?" The cat-like teen asked out of curiosity.

"It's Kai Hiwatari. What was yours? I didn't catch it." A deep voice startled him from behind.

Rei excused himself from Dev, and turned to face Kai. He saw the same slate bangs and sapphire triangles frowning upon him. He opened his mouth to introduce himself, but found himself sinking into the familiarity of deep and endless pools of crimson.

* * *

So, there! I'm done! I'm not too good with POVs but I tried. You know how everyone preaches practice makes perfect. It was worth a shot. It wasn't all that bad, in my opinion. (And LaDiNi, I made Kai…er, Kai-like )

Hope you guys enjoyed it. Thanks for reading. I, unfortunately, can't read minds. So, please leave a review telling me what you think, be it bad, or good.

That's it for now. So until next time…

Andhera


	3. II

Excuses for tardiness? Yeah, I have tonnes! I'm sure you all have a good three hours to waste anyways.

… Or not.

Still, it got here, ne? That is what counts, ne?

Without further ado: I do not own Beyblade or anything in association with it. It isn't even wishful thinking anymore. And if I stood to claim Dev to be mine, I'm sure you'll be able to find my corpse somewhere.

Without further, further ado:

**

* * *

**

It took a while.

A while to recognize him; a while to remember; a while to realize that he'd been waiting for this day; a while to get lost in euphoria; a while to realize that he was the only one cursed with remembrance.

It took a while for the pain of surviving for the past thirteen years to wrap itself around his neck and suffocate him.

It was there in his eyes, reflected so clearly. There was the forgotten memory - the one day in his life that had kept him alive. It was so clearly evident in his eyes, yet it had disappeared – erased forever - by force of will.

He had chosen his path in life and the other has chosen his own. They intersected most painfully. For they didn't walk down the same path.

He'd chosen the sentimental path while the other hadn't.

In that moment, he had both found and lost the purpose of his life.

* * *

"Rei Kon" He smiled. Kai noticed his canines were longer than the average person's. "Nice to meet you, Kai." 

"Hiwatari." The stoic boy icily insisted before turning back to proofreading his work.

"Asshole." A muttered growl fluttered from where Dev sat. Kai didn't fail to ignore her completely, worsening her agitation.

"Sure." Rei muttered half-heartedly before turning back to Dev. Before he could open his mouth to say anything else, the teacher returned, occupying him at her desk for the rest of the period.

Sometime toward the end of class, when the raven haired student felt completely swamped with work, the teacher let him go. An all too relieved sigh escaped him as he sat back down. "They're trying to kill me." He accused, exhausted from just listening.

"I'll remember you fondly." The blue-haired girl winked up at him, zipping her bag shut.

"I can die happy." He smiled back, his tone heavy with weary sarcasm.

"So, where do you live Rei?" She asked, turning to face him. She watched, slightly amused, as Rei, with exaggerated hand gestures, explained to her where he was living.

"That's the general direction I go in. I'll walk with you." Dev offered, smiling cheerfully at the new student.

"Thanks for spending the last few moments of my life with me." Rei's smile was heavy, and his voice only partly sarcastic.

"I take pity on the fresh victims. They evoke malice from those who call themselves teachers." The azure haired girl chipped, rising in sync with the last bell. "Let's go."

Rei nodded in affirmation, quickly stuffing all the papers into his bag and slinging it onto his shoulder. "Matta ne, Hiwatari-kun." He called back softly before leaving.

"Ja." Kai replied reflexively. His eyes lingered on Rei's seat, his face torn between annoyance and anger. His grip on the notebook in his hands tightened, setting permanent wrinkles in the cardboard cover.

"Yo!" Takao enthusiastically greeted, straddling the seat Kai was currently glaring at. "What're you trying to melt the chair or something?"

"Yeah, something like that." The stoic teen snapped icily, briskly getting to his feet.

Takao was taken aback by his colder than usual nature. It'd been similar this morning, like Kai was expecting a disaster. His current behavior confirmed the prophesized disaster.

"Going home?" A curious glance.

"Where else?" A cold shoulder.

"The blading park." A careless shrug.

"Gave that up." Subtle twitches.

Kai's head resembled a stress ball, his fists clenching in hopes of relieving the pressure. Upon seeing white knuckles, concern grazed Takao's features. Enough of it accumulated for the enthusiast to get up and gingerly place a comforting hand on the other's shoulder.

It was brushed off easily, the frigid action punctuated with a "Don't touch me."

"Kai!" The worried boy called out after the retreating figure.

He walked on, oblivious to his surroundings. His pace increased into a near run. A sharp pain pulsated through his head, ricocheting off his skull until it took the form of a light beam caught in a room of angled mirrors. It sliced through the remains of his sanity, blurring his vision and dimming his senses.

He stumbled home, gaining many aberrant gazes from unaware passersby. Clinging to walls and railing for support, he managed to find his room - his neat, tidy room which harbored a comfortable futon in the left corner. Before he could reach it, something in his brain snapped. His consciousness had fled without a moment's notice, and he crumbled to the cold floor.

Someone turned out the lights.

* * *

"China," was Rei's answer when Dev questioned his origins. 

"Wow, did you live in a thriving metropolis?" She asked, eager curiosity conquering her voice.

"No, I come from the suburbs - a village." He smiled politely at her zealous curiosity.

"Really? Any friends you miss from there?" She asked, with fervor rivaling that of the previous question.

"I miss all the White Tigers – the clan I belong to." His voice was deadpan, making the _long lost friends_ a no touch zone.

"Tell me about them sometime? I turn off here." A finger pointed left.

"Sure thing! Tomorrow, if I live to see daylight." The raven haired boy joked.

"So, I'll see you." Dev waved as Rei walked on.

"Matta ne!" Rei waved back with zest, breaking into a run.

He didn't know how long he'd been running or where he was. Looking around, he assumed he'd taken a wrong turn somewhere. Around him, concrete giants towered. This was – presumably – downtown.

A few girls brushed past him, giggles and winks shamelessly evading them. In an adjacent alleyway, a heavy scent of tobacco mingled with the toxic fumes of marijuana. Rei breathed in, the familiar fragrances stinging his lungs. Alcohol poisoned the words that were thrown between the dreary souls that regularly haunted such deserted alleys.

Walking a few steps in all directions, Rei concluded that he was completely stranded in a current of people. They were all to busy running two steps before time to stop and tend to lost strangers. Those who had the will to engage anonymous people in conversation were too vulgar, and the raven haired boy was not so bold as to approach them for help.

Luck, taking pity on the distressed student, intersected his life with another - literally.

"Oh, I'm so sorry."

"No big deal."

"I was too busy thinking instead of watching out for people."

"Something similar."

That was how apologies were exchanged, followed by mutual smiles. One stranger extended his hand to help another - this was how their relationship began.

"Zeo Zaggart."

"Rei Kon."

"You lost?"

"Something like that."

"Where were you headed?"

"Home."

"And where would that be?"

The characteristically dramatic explanation didn't fail to amuse a second person.

"How'd you manage to get here from that place?"

"I really don't know. I don't even know where here is."

A chuckle was given, and a sheepish smile received in exchange.

"Want me to show you the way back?"

"That'd be nice."

Strands of teal green hair fluttered out of the loose braid as the frail boy took a step towards Rei's home.

"You needn't walk me there. Directions would be fine. It'd be too much trouble for you to walk there and back."

"I was going in the general direction. No trouble at all."

"I see. You live there-ish too?"

"Not really, though my home is somewhere there."

"You don't live at home?"

"Not yet…"

"How come?"

"There's no space for me."

"That can't be true."

"I live in an apartment a few blocks from here. The environment is nicer, more peaceful than this city bustle."

"Anything like home?"

"I don't know."

An eyebrow was arched.

"I've never been home, so I don't know what it's like. I can only speculate."

"You didn't run away?"

"No, I lived with my father for a while, but he was called away indefinitely. For work."

"Ah, so you're home is with your mother?"

"No. she's dead."

A remorseful pause paid homage where it was due.

"I'm so sorry."

"Why? You're no better off than me. Worse in fact."

Silence.

"How did you…?"

"I can tell. You were orphaned at a young age."

"That's what I call talent."

A chuckle. "I never knew her. You have memories of them that bring you pain. I don't. That makes you the sorrier person."

"Gee, thanks."

"I do what I need to for surviving."

"I'm beginning to regret running into you."

"I'm only just getting started."

They laughed, softly, slowly. Above them, the sky bled - the rays of a set sun cutting through the dimming blue. Red pooled, broken by orange and white. Flowers studding the paved path shied away from the rising moon, retreating into sleep. A light breeze scurried around them like a mother tucking her children into bed.

Ebony and aquamarine fluttered in sync with the cool waves of air.

"Ne, Kon-san…"

"Rei."

"Fine, Rei-san,"

"Rei."

"Rei-kun?"

"Rei."

"Fine then, Rei-_chan_…"

"Addicted to suffixes?"

"Maybe - or I could have ulterior motives."

"Sadist."

"Thank you."

Zeo enacted a flowery bow. Rei giggled in return. A comfortable give and take system had been silently set up between them. Words just flowed between them, as though they were long lost friends.

As Zeo walked on, Rei stood still. Turning, a questioning look was given and a gesture to a house was received. The featured house has two floors and a modest garden which stretched over the front. A small fountain was set up, and the calming sound of water against water echoed.

"I live here."

"Alone?"

"Yeah."

"Small enough for you?"

"I get by."

"If you every have time off homework, cleaning and gardening, call me."

"Don't expect one."

"And here I was thinking of ways to ward off annoying stalker-friends."

"Honored."

"You should be."

"Narcissist."

"Guilty as charged."

"Want to come in?"

"Sure."

The conversation continued as Rei opened the gate. Zeo had gotten a hold of the other's cellphone, and was keying in his number. As Rei pushed the gate open, he heard a shriek; one that caused him to tumbled past the gate into the small pond.

The sound of Rei against water was most hilarious. As Zeo took the liberty of pointing and laughing, two boys caught up to them. Upon seeing the drenched boy, the navy haired boy tried not to guffaw. As a result, he was leaning against the gate, massacred squeaks and giggles evading him. The blonde rushed to the soaked boy's aid, pulling him out and wringing out his uniform.

"You okay." The blonde asked, apprehensively peering at Rei.

"Peachy." He replied, his tone drunk with sarcasm.

The duet of laughter and squeaky giggles continued.

"Sorry, dude." The navy haired boy managed, attempting to straighten himself out, "I just wanted to invite Zeo over, yknow, before he disappeared and all. Haven't talked to him in a while."

"Feel free." Rei injected, before Zeo had a chance to decline. "We were just exchanging numbers."

"You're the new kid in school, right?" The blonde asked, backing off Rei, convinced of his well being. "I'm Max, and that over there is Takao."

The outgoing boy flashed a V with his fingers. "Yo! You're in our class right?"

"Apparently." Rei smiled back, trying to squeeze water out of his tightly bound hair.

After snapping his fingers a couple of times to remember something, he asked, "Don't you sit in front of Kai?"

"Yes, I sit in front of Hiwatari-kun." His voice had a subtle bitterness to it, which no one but Zeo caught.

"Um, did something like happen there? Not between you two or anything, but in general…?" He stumbled on his own thoughts, trying to voice them coherently.

"Not that I remember, why?" A light drizzle started.

"He seemed edgy after school. Oh crap. I should probably go home and check up on him. Coming Maxie, Zeo?" Takao jogged away a bit, looking back for his friends. "Bye Rei, see you tomorrow."

Nodding, the two of them took off, waving a polite goodbye. Zeo waved his cellphone and looked mildly grateful as he followed Takao home.

Rei just barely noticed their fading silhouettes in the now pouring rain. His drenched hair stuck to his cheeks and neck, while the longer tail of his hair lay heavy and limp. His clothes were in no better shape.

His skin was too numb to feel any of it. His vision hazed, presenting the world in careless smudges of crayon. Losing his equilibrium, he crumbled to his knees, painlessly bruising the numb skin there.

The overwhelming pain that choked him in the aftermath of his epiphany had returned. It was slow, sadistic torture. It was being trapped in a box, locked with the key thrown into an ocean. Nothing but the key could salvage the situation.

Kai had exiled Rei-rei from his life – and in doing so had begun erasing Rei from existence.

The rain impetuously washed away all his tears, much like what Kai had done to his memories.

* * *

This was too short,so I decided to get Zeo in. It's still a considerably short chapter, just spacey because of Rei and Zeo's conversation. I do hope that didn't throw anyone off. I was trying to see if I could leave out impertinent details. That and not adding dead details leaves a lot more to perception - experimenting with that too. 

Originally I was going to give away who remembered and who didn't in the first line of the chapter. But it works this way too. (Right?) I was just in the mood to write something ambiguous, and there it was. Then I debated on actually letting the _secret_ go in this chapter, or leaving it for later. It seems optimal in this one. (You should, by now, know who remembered and whose POV that beginning snippet was in.)

Mm, I think I've ranted enough for an entire novel; and this is only a brief chapter. Feedback is always loved (in the experimental stages.) Look forward to it. Thanks to everyone who has helped out so far. I love you all. 333


	4. III

There is a lengthy author's note at the end. Read it if you are interested. It is advisable to just skim. It might numb your mind, the way female rambling can.

* * *

_I no promise forever…_

The clock had ticked two hours.

_I be Rei-Rei's friend…_

The rain had gathered in a pool around him.

"Bullshit."

Maybe if he lay there for the night, the water around him would raise enough to drown him. His tears would probably help.

The phone echoed its ear-piercing ring through the silence.

The probability of drowning in rain was low. So, he pulled himself up. The phone had stopped ringing by now. Besides, he had nothing to die for. Not yet.

Collecting the stray strands of hair, he attempted squeezing the excess water from them. A few strands broke loose, and he knotted them up to throw them out.

"What kind of friend just forgets about you like that?" Rei mumbled to himself. "Besides it was his fault that I left… Baka."

His cyclical mumbling wrapped itself around him, pushing him into a dark hole of depression. He tracked water all over the house as he paced, deciding what to do. He'd been caught up in a big mess, and had run away from it, and now found himself in a hopeless situation. If they found him, he'd be killed for sure. If he pushed it with Kai, he'd be killed sooner. Great, now all he had to decide was whether he wanted death by Kai or death by torturous sadists.

Wait, how was Kai not a torturous sadist? Everything he'd heard about the boy today pointed to a 720 degree change.

Peachy.

Finally, he dragged his soggy self to the shower, and stood under the warm, soothing water. He lost track of time, and didn't know how long he'd been in there. Looking down at his calloused hands, he decided it would be best to get away from water unless he wanted to be the world's most pruned boy.

With his hair and waist wrapped in a towel each, he stepped into the dry cold of his room (or at least one of them). Rummaging for clothes, he made a mental note to get Dev's phone number or e-mail or something tomorrow. Maybe part of the reason Kai forgot him was because they didn't keep in touch. Then again, he chased him into the depths of hell; what more was a guy to do?

No, Kai was just a jerk, Rei decided, and that he wasn't going to push this remember me thing a lot. So what? He'd known Kai when he was three and innocent for just a few hours. Still they had said goodbye, no doubt in the cutest manner ever, but still it was goodbye.

Rei's face resembled a brake light, remembering the goodbye.

"THE BASTARD STOLE MY FIRST KISS." He yelled at the walls, which seemed to shrink back from fright.

Regardless of the fact that Rei had made the advancement, it definitely was Kai's fault. That was it, he wasn't talking to the two-timing, forgetting… person, anymore.

Rei never thought he'd meet the day when he ran out of swear words.

* * *

Kai's consciousness woke to the patter of rain on the window sill and floor. The window had been left slightly ajar, and water trickled into a puddle on the hardwood floor. His half lidded eyes focused on the small falling drops. His head didn't pound as much. 

The floor was cold; and that foot on his back was heavy.

"Aka, if that is you, bloody murder with follow my getting up." Kai threatened, not feeling like getting up.

"Aka?" The teal haired boy tilted his head curiously.

"Yeah, it's… strange." Max stopped short of confirming, remembering Takao's animated description of Kai's plans of torture. Did they even make rotisserie ovens that big? Then again, the blonde wasn't that large.

"Kai is human, guys. He nicknames… a lot of stuff." Takao beamed shamelessly, ignoring the threat.

"Takao…" Kai spat out through clenched teeth.

"That is death's cue." The blue haired boy grinned, fear laced into his eyes. "Maybe I should run."

"Unless you learn how to fly, nothing will save you." Kai barked, managing to do it monotonously, as he pushed himself off the floor.

"Shit." The smaller boy cursed.

"Yeah, you'll have some of that fly towards you too." Kai's eyes narrowed as Takao ran out of the room, the blond best friend following him.

Zeo smiled at the furious boy beside him. "You like Takao." He noted slyly, out loud.

"Pardon?" Kai's narrowed eyes bounced back to their normal shape in surprise.

"You like Takao." He repeated calmly.

"On what basis?" He asked, crossing his arms.

"Well, you're not chasing him, screaming bloody hell, for one." Zeo pointed out.

"I don't run, and I don't scream bloody hell." Kai retorted.

"Then when do you plan on killing him? If you do plan on that is…" There was genuine curiosity in the younger boy's aquamarine eyes.

"I'll get him sometime – I always do. Usually in the mornings." Kai's lips wrinkled in a smirk.

"But you favor him." Zeo noted again.

"By hurting him? Sure." He shrugged.

"It's in the way you hurt him." This is when Kai thought the boy was crazy. "And I know deep down you believe it yourself too. Takao is like the brother you never had."

Kai almost smiled.

* * *

Rei, now dressed in jeans and a long, loose tee, picked up the phone and looked at Zeo's cell number. He dialed, and hung up, and dialed and hung up, and dialed, and hung up. 

And dialed, and let it ring once.

"Hi." Zeo greeted normally.

"Are you at that… um, blue-haired guy's house now?" Rei asked, fidgeting with the wire.

"Takao? Yeah, why? Is this Rei?" Kai's head snapped up, and the throbbing started again.

"Yeah, why?"

"You, you, you! Were you the nutcase who dialed my number fifty times and hung up?"

"No. I remember dialing only 49 times. The other one must have been someone else." Zeo twitched.

"You, you… just…" Zeo growled, somewhat annoyed.

"Sorry. Didn't know I was disturbing something."

"Of course you were! Here Kai is literally popping a vein because of all the ringing."

"Oh so he's alive and well then."

"Yeah, pretty much. Takao just came in and pissed him off. He's good to go for the rest of the day."

Rei chuckled on the other end of the line. "Stop talking about me." He could hear Kai order.

"Well well, quite an ego he has on him." Rei tsked.

"I know, as if we have nothing better to do than talk about you Kai." Even Kai could hear Rei's laughter.

Kai snatched the small electronic gizmo from Zeo hand and curtly said, "Well, are you done disrupting my conversation with Zeo?"

"Conversation? Oh, so you _do_ know what that is." Kai twitched.

"I'm vaguely familiar."

"Then don't you think it's equally rude to steal Zeo's cellphone and ruin ours? I didn't think you were as petty as revenge Kai."

"Hiwatari."

"Whatever."

"I think I should have a say in what people call me."

"But Kai is as much your name as Hiwatari. It's not like I'm calling you cotton candy or muffin."

Kai's face almost exploded, and Zeo held back his laughter. "Excuse me?"

Rei smirked on the other side of the line. That was it; he was going to use Kai as stress relief from now on. That could only be fun. (Perhaps a little suicidal but he could handle it.)

"Maybe I should-"

"You dare not."

"What if I do?"

"I will-"

"Slur out empty threats?"

"Why you-" A bell sounded on the other end of the line.

"My pizza is here. Please tell Zeo goodbye for me, since you pilfered his phone. Bye now…"

Rei heard Kai growl, andfelt compelled to add, "…muffin," before hanging up.

Kai stared at the phone, extremely bewildered, though it didn't take form in facial expressions. Who the hell was this audacious guy!

Muffin?

The nerve of him.

With swearing painful revenge, he slammed his thumb on the end button, putting an end to the dead beeping. He tossed the phone Zeo's way and exited the room.

Where was Takao? He needed a stress ball and that apparent younger brother of his had an appealingly circular head.

* * *

Zeo dialed back Rei's home phone number from the logs on his cell. 

"Yo."

"Do you have any idea how many different ways Kai is going to hurt Takao?"

"Oh, Zeo." Chew, swallow, sip on tea. "What's up?"

"You don't care do you?"

"About Kai, no not really." His tone was the lovechild of bratty and spiteful.

"I meant about Takao getting killed in several different ways."

"Oh, him. Kai wouldn't kill him. He's not a killing type." Rei wrote off.

"Oh, and I guess you know him well enough to guarantee me Takao's safety then?" He teased.

"You'd be surprised." He mumbled to himself.

"What? I didn't hear that." Zeo held the phone closer.

"The stoic anti-socials are always predictable and startlingly soft on the inside." Rei elaborated.

"Again, you know enough stoic people to gua--" Zeo was cut off.

"You'd be surprised at how many Kai-esque people I know. And, what is with you? Are you in love with this Takao guy? All you keep saying is guarantee his safety, guarantee his safety."

"I- uh, aa… um, well, you see…" Zeo rambled, caught a little off guard. Although a few people did know of his fanboy crush on Takao, no one had ever asked him bluntly like that.

"Yeah, I see." Rei smirked, so strongly that Zeo could feel it through the connection.

"You evil… evil…" Zeo's phone was how juggling between his shoulder and his ear as his fists threw a childish tantrum.

"…bastard?" Rei helped out.

"Exactly." Zeo nodded in solemn agreement as Rei laughed on the other end.

"So anything interesting happen today? Or did you just call to warn me that you were psychotically in love with--"

"Oh shut up." Zeo cut off bluntly. "As for interesting, I saw with my own to eyes, Kai having a conversation with a complete and utter stranger. It takes most people about 9 months to get him to even look their way. I'd call that interesting."

"Oh, and who might that stranger be?" Rei munched on another slice of pizza.

"…think hard." Zeo prodded, taken aback by Rei's… stupidity seemed a nice word.

"What? I don't know Kai well enough to--" Rei's eyes thinned in realization. "Oh, you mean muffin has taken a liking to me?"

Zeo laughed, "Yeah, something like that. It's weird when you know someone to be one way for so long and then they up and change before your eyes."

Something snapped behind Rei's eyes, which were now forlorn and lost. "Yeah, I know what you mean." He said with a deadpan seriousness that frightened Zeo.

"Mm?"

"People can be so… human sometimes." Rei whined sarcastically, blinking away the nostalgia.

"Tch, how inconsiderate of them. They should really control themselves more."

"They should be more aware of the world around them - tone down on the selfishness and all."

"Absolutely." And they both laughed.

"So, how is muffin holding up on the killing spree."

"I hear no cries for help, so it must be all good." Zeo optimistically reported, trying hard to keep from laughing.

"Or maybe he's dead." Rei teased.

"Oi, don't be like—I'm going to check." Zeo stuck his tongue out at the phone.

"Sure. Take care."

"If I find him dead, then you'll be in for--"

"More empty threats? You hang around Kai too much."

"I'll convey my regards to your muffin for you." Zeo giggled, "Bye then."

_My muffin_, thought Rei bitterly, _yeah right_.

Kai standing outside the door had similar thoughts. _His muff-_

_I am not a muffin.

* * *

_

I think it'll get lighter, since I do not intend to start off the year with angst. Exams are around the corner, so again, no promises. But, the afore-promised author's explanation is as follows:

I realize it has been over a year since I last updated, and I am not quite as apologetic as some of you perhaps would expect of me. The fact of the matter is that I haven't watched Beyblade in almost two years now and have slowly but surely slipped out of the fandom.

I do not intend in putting forth a big effort in getting back into it, for I do not have the energy to keep running after something that is not so actively a part of my life anymore. Still, I am here, pulling up this chapter for about the 5th time, hoping I will finish it. This, I won't lie, is not because I truly want to finish this story. All the plans I had for this story have faded from my mind. I initially started it as a response to a challenge but doubt, since I can not recall my initial plans, that it will adhere very much to the theme of "growing up".

However, I will try my best to keep the story flowing as best I can, and finish it as best I can to satisfy you guys, the main reason I'm still writing this. I have gotten both reviews and e-mails urging me to continue this story in particular. I doubt that many people are waiting for this story, but a few people have it on alert. My mind just writes it off as something they forgot to take off their list. But, just in case anyone is still interested in reading, I'll continue writing it.

I'd probably be lying if I said that I'm writing solely for the public. I want to have something finished as a memory of this fandom. It's always nice to have something to look back on. And it does seem like I will fall out of it soon.

Please don't misunderstand this message as a cry for reviews. None of you are obligated to review or e-mail me. My intent isn't at all to emotionally blackmail you into serenading me, or the like. I just felt anyone who wondered, deserved a clear explanation of my absence. It's just that I have no one of this fandom to talk with, or fangirl with anymore. So I tend to participate more in the fandoms where most of my friends find interest. It's flawed human tendency I know, but hey, I'm just as well human.

So, my entire point was, I'm not sorry that I was gone, but I'm back for a little while at least. Feel free to leave review yelling at me for abandoning faith, or… whatever, but I find it bleak being in a fandom where I can't talk with anyone about my random ideas, or be an airhead fangirl for an hour.

So, continue reviewing if you feel like it; you are in no way obligated. My updating speed isn't proportional to the number of reviews I get; but hey! I'm here writing because of them, because some few people told me it was about time they got to read more.

Also, if you're up to getting me back into the fandom, or just want to talk to crazy l'il me, my e-mail is shadow . neko at gmail dot com, without the spacing. You can also find me on AIM at andherachama. I do use msn with a hotmail ID of dawningnightmare, but I'm not on MSN frequently. E-mail is the best way to reach me. I check it frequently (because I love e-mails and am hopelessly addicted to them). I'm open to meeting new people, and just talking or receiving recs. So, feel free.

With that, I end my long and boring speech, which probably made you forget about everything in the chapter. Thank you all for the wonderful time. Writing is that much more fun because of you. )


	5. IV

Oh… dear. I think I'm landing myself in a mess. I have absolutely no idea where I was going with the plot. I think I mentioned it in my last update, oh – 3 years ago!?

Thank you for reading.

* * *

Although Kai slept, he did not feel rested when he crawled out of bed. At the very least his brain wasn't pulsating waves of pain. He had a recurring nightmare but it was not of the horror variety – the kind which Takao invariably had whenever they watched a low budget haunted mansion movie, wherein the blue hair furball would end up in his bed by morning. No, his nightmare was more indicative of insanity – the kind which got you in a straightjacket in an asylum where you look out the window and see nature literally talking to you.

He blamed that new son of a bitch who sat in front of him in math class. Why else would he dream of being a muffin that ice-skated? Although, the ice-skating bit troubled him. Did he even know how to skate? Probably; he knew how to do everything.

His morning was routine, all the way up till trying to wake Takao. He'd managed an equally amusing threat this morning and was pleased with himself. He was smearing marmalade on a piece of toast when Takao darted into the kitchen.

"Breakfast is to-go today, Aka-mou." Aka-imouto had already evolved into a new nickname. By this stage, Kai's constant re-nicknaming was subconscious. Takao mumbled something, his brain evidently still half asleep. Kai walked out the door with the toast and Takao followed the toast. He was hungry.

"When are you going to tell me what's wrong." He asked, snatching the toast away from Kai, who wouldn't just hand it over.

"Why do you think something is wrong?" He asked nonchalantly, happy that they didn't have to sprint to school today.

"I don't know. You're being moody." Takao shrugged, unsure of himself. He didn't have a case, so if Kai was going to be difficult, he had little to work with.

"Moody? If you're talking about after school yesterday where I was trying to 'melt the chair', I was just angry because of my headache. I'm angry by nature. You know that."

"Yeah… that's not it. You passed out. I've never seen you pass out." Takao furthered, hoping to get somewhere. "And Zeo mentioned something about you being strange too."

Kai twitched subtly. _That's only because Zeo heard the Rei-muffin story._ He thought to himself, his nightmare flashing through his mind momentarily. He sighed in defeat.

"See, what I mean!" Takao was quick to point out the anomalous behavior. "You never sigh. Since when do you sigh?"

"Ever since you repeat yourself in the same sentence," Kai responded monotonously.

"I only do that when my best friend is being a secretive bastard." Takao crossed his hands, the toast long gone, a childish pout settling on his face. He knew he wasn't going to get anywhere.

"You knew I was a secretive bastard before you chose to become my best friend." Kai pointed out, annoying Takao a great deal with his logic.

"Well," Takao huffed, "it's tough not becoming attached to someone you live with and see everyday, okay?"

Kai watched in silent amusement as Takao stormed off and walked a few paces ahead of him all the way to school. He appreciated the silence. It was interesting to him how opposite the two of them were, but at the same time they had compatible personalities. Like this situation for instance; Takao's childishness surfaces in sync with Kai's need for isolation. The way they work out so perfectly was a marvel to Kai. On the other hand, Takao probably didn't notice such things and wrote them off as something as trivial as 'we're just special because we live together'.

"Kinomiya-san!" Kai was pulled out of his musings by a familiar voice. He dreaded hearing it, especially this early in the morning. "Good morning." Max's far more informal greeting followed immediately after.

He walked by Takao, Max and the new kid without so much as a glance their way. He heard Takao explain to the others the turn of their conversation this morning. It was okay with Kai if everyone thought that this was a household quarrel between himself and Takao. He didn't know of the pair of amber eyes following him as Takao carried on his story.

Rei returned his focus to the details of Takao's rambling. Apparently Kai had been acting strange since yesterday. It was probably coincidence that he returned into Kai's life the very same day. However, this coincidence bothered him. Rei did not like where his mind took him. He was the type of person to be well aware of his thoughts and knew that this was the beginning of a long love-hate relationship his mind would have with Kai's very existence. Sometimes, Rei felt like it did not matter; that he would use the strange power he had over Kai to tease him till his life was miserable. It would be his version of sweet revenge where no one would get seriously hurt. Then there were those times when he wanted to hunt Kai down and drive a stake through his heart, after inducing inconceivable amounts of torture on his stoic mind and body.

Rei knew that this sort of mentality was not healthy for him. He would either have to control it or move. _Move _- The thought made his chest clench. After all that he had been through to get here, it broke his heart to contemplate leaving it behind. Normally, Rei would march up to Kai and demand that he be remembered. But, it was not rational to expect someone to remember a person they met for a few hours on a cold winter day 13 years ago. Of course, it wasn't rational that Rei chased after Kai with such an intense passion at that young age either. Nothing about the two of them seemed rational to Rei.

"So you did live to see daylight again." Rei was drawn out of his thoughts to see a beaming blue-haired girl before him. "I'm glad."

It took Rei a moment to gather himself before he responded with, "Yeah, lucky me. My guardian angel must've figured that I haven't endured enough of the wonderful game of catch-up-in-school." He offered a soft smile. "Good morning."

Dev merely chuckled in response. _That's right_, Rei realized, _there is no two of us._ The thought brought on another wave of dejection, but he fought it off refocusing on the conversation before him. Takao had begun talking about butter and marmalade, which left both Dev and Rei entirely lost in the interaction. So they walked towards school slowly. Their pace allowed Takao to continue his animated story telling process. Most onlookers had a difficult time hiding their amusement.

Before he knew it, he was at school in a classroom. The first thing he noticed, to his dismay, was the absence of a certain cold-hearted bastard. He, however did notice Zeo and took a seat behind him.

"I didn't know you were my age." He commented, not knowing where else to start small talk.

"I'm not," was Zeo's short response. Rei was quick to pick up on his distracted demeanor that morning.

"Are you a genius child who skipped a few grades?"

Zeo's let out a short laugh, his eyes returning to Rei. "No I'm just taking a couple of classes that are a year above mine. That's all."

"Keener." Rei teased, lightly punching the other's shoulder. "What's on your mind today? You seem to be drifting."

Zeo's eyes widened slightly at the comment. Rei was particularly sharp, he noted. There weren't too many of those around. "What're you talking about? You've known me for the length of a conversation. Maybe I'm just a distracted child by nature. Maybe I'm offended!" Zeo tried to pull attention away from the topic with light-hearted humor. It didn't work.

"It's okay if you don't want to talk about it." Rei smiled, changing the topic. "What did you end up having for dinner? Did you stay over at Kinomiya-san's house to eat?"

Zeo picked up on the new topic immediately. He had many stories to tell of Kai trying to make Takao an extinct species. Eventually the teacher arrived and conducted class as per normal. At the end of class, Rei had to stay behind to collect another large pile of work and make up assignments. This was his routine for the rest of the day, by which time he had too much to carry. The anticipation of having to complete the work was far more overwhelming than it's weight. Apparently, the only two classes he shared with Kai were Mathematics and Physical Fitness. He had managed not to look into those crimson eyes at all today.

At the end of the day, Dev offered Rei a hand in carrying all his work home. When Rei politely declined she forced it on him. They passed Takao, Zeo, Max, Miriam and Kai at the school gates. Takao yelled a goodbye and waved enthusiastically. Rei smiled back with an entertained "See you tomorrow, Kinomiya-san."

"Takao."

"Takao-san."

"Takao."

"Taka---"

Before the scene unfolded further, Zeo quickly interjected, "Takao hates formalities. Even Kai doesn't use suffixes for him in public."

"In my defence, Kai doesn't speak in public." This illicited scattered laughter from his audience and a nasty scowl from the teased.

"Anything informal is fine. After all, you're my friend, not my guidance counselor." Rei smiled. Rumors of Takao's sessions with the guidance counselor had already reached him. Then again, the boy sometimes did worrisome things.

"Okay, Bye Taka-chin," He winked an amber eye at the blue haired boy, "Zeo, Max, see you tomorrow."

Rei and Dev took a few steps towards home before he turned and said in the gentlest voice imaginable, "Oh, see you tomorrow too, muffin." With that the pair walked away before Kai had any opportunity to retort. In fact, with his eyes wide and his lips parted, one would imagine if given the opportunity to react, he would have nothing to say.

Kai had followed the rest the the beyblade park, and had denied the group an explanation on Rei's charming remark. He'd given up on the sport a few years ago. His involvement in the sport had left him with more mental agony than he could bear. Regardless of how deep he searched for the cause of his pain, he surfaced empty. So, after long hours spent thinking about a solution, he'd decided to give up the sport. He remembered the feeling to this day - like he'd lost a part of his soul to an unseen enemy. But since then, he'd gotten better. His stable relationships with the people close to him proved so. The very fact that he could live with other people was proof of his good decision. He did not have to deal with pain like that since.

Until yesterday.

That black-haired, amber-eyed, twit had given him a headache which rivaled those of his past. Why? He wanted to find out. He was anxious; he needed to know. He needed to know now.

He excused himself from the park early and made his way home, thinking of ways to solve this mystery. Something inside him warned him that coming up empty handed this time would not be enough; that choosing the easy way out would not cut it. What was so special about this boy? He seemed average, annoying, lack-lustre. There was nothing about him that stood out. Except those eyes. Those eyes - Kai felt he could drown in them. They were bottomless. He was afraid to look into those large pools of gold because they trapped him and suffocated him. It was torture of the alluring type. The kind of taboo which you are relentlessly drawn toward for no particular reason. The question still stood. Why him?

Kai stopped outside a sizable house. While he'd seen larger, it was big compared to the surrounding real estate. The garden was gorgeous with a fountain by the gate, which was currently slightly ajar. Kai remembered passing a girl from his class earlier, and if he remembered correctly, she was the same person Rei left school with; unless neon highlights were a new trend. He hoped not. Walking closer to the gate, he read the name engraved onto the name plate beside the gate. _Dickinson_. He couldn't remember Rei's last name. Was it that long? The Asian did not look like a Dickinson. Did he even get the other boy's last name?

Lost in his cyclical train of thought, Kai rang the bell without intending too. _Shit_. Should he run? He didn't run. He didn't want to run. He wanted to know. He needed to.

Rei realized the identity of his visitor from the front door. He was surprised and in a strangely bad mood. This would not go well, Rei's intuition warned him. He would be better off turning Kai away. _Pretend like you're too busy with homework, _his mind urged him. He ended up gesturing Kai from the front door.

_Come here_ he waved.

Kai obliged, closing the gate to the property on his way in. At this point, neither of the boys knew why they were here together.

"What're you doing here?" Rei asked, stepping out of the doorway. "Am I in trouble for the muffin comment? Because then this will have to wait."

Kai walked past his host, ignoring his question. The hallway opened up into a room which was buried under a mess of papers. "Is all this homework?"

"Like I said, if this is about my cheekiness, it'll have to wait." Rei reinstated.

Kai ignored him again. "Where can I sit?"

Rei sighed. "Well, I wasn't expecting company to be honest. So we'll have to take this to my room."

By the time Rei realized the potential innuendo in his words, Kai was facing him an eyebrow arched. "I saw Dev leave not too long ago. I'm surprised you managed this mess in such a short amount of time."

"Well, do you see the monumental amount of work I have to complete?" Rei started, his irritation at the work and bad mood setting in. _Wait. _"Saw Dev leave...? Are you stalking me?"

Kai's deadpan expression did not seem amused. Then again Rei wasn't being entirely sarcastic. "Where is your room?" Kai inquired, heading for the stairs.

"Do you want anything to drink?" Rei ignored the question. This would be a productive encounter.

"No." Rei was not surprised with the monosyllabic answer. He fetched two bottles of water from the kitchen and proceeded up a set of stairs. As he expected, Kai followed silently.

"So what do you want?" Rei asked, opening the door to his bedroom. "Just sit on the chair." He took a seat on his bed and placed the bottles of water on the table next to him.

Kai did not bother rolling the chair any closer the bed to facilitate an intimate conversation. He merely took a seat and looked at Rei.

Rei did not like the scrutinity of those crimson eyes. He kept silent for a few minutes, waiting for Kai to speak. Eventually, he lost his patience and broke the silence. "So?"

"You're not the same person I talked to on the phone yesterday."

"I am. I'm just in a bad mood. You saw the hurricane of paperwork downstairs. I do not appreciate you wasting my time. Besides, how do you expect me to react to this situation. You've been nothing but hostile since I've met you. Am I supposed to be elated by your unannounced, unexpected visit? I highly doubt you consider me a friend. You don't seem the social types. Correct me if I'---"

"You talk a lot." Kai cut Rei off, leaning his elbows on his thighs.

"You don't talk at all. I guess it's the balance of life." Rei rolled his eyes, taking a sip of water from one of the bottles he brought with him.

Silence filled the room once more for five, no more - ten minutes. Rei sighed and opened his mouth to speak again. "Who are you?" Rei blinked, surprised by the soft, barely audible question.

"Eh?! I'm Rei Kon, the new kid in town. I like wild cats and green things. I dislike disloyalty. My favorite food is ramen." Rei continued on with a general introduction, pouring out information that was quite obviously irrelevant. Seeing no change in reaction from Kai, he pushed himself off his bed and walked over to Kai as he finished off his introduction. "Now that you know who I am, if there isn't anything pressing," He took Kai's hand by the wrist with the intention of pulling him to his feet. "can you please..."

Kai stood. He was only slightly taller than Rei, but to the shorter black-haired chinese, Kai towered above him. "...leave?"

The intensity in the crimson eyes staring at him scared Rei. His hand slid off Kai's wrist and returned to his side. What was that emotion radiating from those deep red eyes? It was not anger. It was fierce, intense, probing. Rei stepped back and Kai advanced with him. He couldn't help but look into those eyes, a defiant expression reflected in his amber eyes.

The back of his knees hit his bed frame and they stopped. "Who are you?" Kai's voice sounded aloof and dazed. It was as if he was not in control of his actions. Rei's defiance quivered and gave way to nervousness. He could not avert his gaze.

Kai was being pulled in. It was as if the vibrant golden color of Rei's eyes had grabbed him and would never let go. His head began to thunder once again, but he would not notice just yet. He felt Rei's body trying to move back and took a step forward, forgetting that they were blocked by the bed. By this time Rei was leaning back and Kai felt the tension and nervousness emanate from the shorter boy. He felt a gate which had restrained his emotions all these years break open. The first emotion that rushed through his body was anger, a raging anger which filled him with the desire to devour the creature before him.

Something flashed through Kai's eyes and they seemed to turn blood red from the rich wine color they normally were. Kai growled, leaning into Rei till their faces were inches apart. "Why are you here? Who are you?" He yelled, his anger bleeding through in his voice and in his expression.

Rei was completely overwhelmed and intimidated. He fell back on his bed with Kai falling forward to cage him. Those canines looked much more vicious now than they did yesterday. Rei trembled and began to withdraw into a dark place in his mind. Kai's leg brushed against his, which snapped Rei out of his frightened fit. It was the first time he realized his how close they were. He tried to move away, but Kai had a firm hold on his position. The stale bangs framed the face of a caged, hungry animal.

_Splash_.

Rei had grabbed the first thing he could reach - the bottle of water on his bedside table - and splashed the contents at Kai's face. The water almost immediately washed away the anger. Kai stared down at his hostage, his eyes crimson again. A look of confusion spread below the drops of water. What had happened? Why was he inches away from the new kid's lips. His gaze lingered on the seemingly soft lips before returning to horrified, angry amber eyes.

"Get out." Rei's voice was low and dangerous, taking Kai by surprise; so much surprise that he couldn't move initially. "I said - **get out**!"

"Rei, I--" Kai was interrupted by the sound of crumpling plastic. Rei tossed the crushed bottle into a corner and pushed Kai off him.

"Get the fuck out. Leave. And don't you dare ever speak to me again. _Ever_." Rei grabbed Kai's arm and dragged him till he was out the front door, which was slammed shut.

Kai stared at the varnished door, his eyes wide and confused, his head pulsing and aching as it had on the previous day.

On the other side, Rei leaned against the door and sunk to the floor. Angry tears rushed down his cheeks. A cornered and desperate lion was wavering in his wet, amber eyes.

* * *

**Author's Note**

The sorry fact that I have nothing to do but stare at a computer at work has led to me (re)discovering FFnet and remembering that I actually have an account here. How lovely! I know. (Following suit, ensued the comedy of how I forgot my password and tried to retrieve it despite my iron-clad secure work computer and it's resistance to give me access to personal email.)

What blew my mind was: this story is still getting read. Wow, that's dedication.

So, once again, I too jump on the dedication bandwagon. As always, no promises. (But, hey! Give me credit for not abandoning it just yet.)

I will try to keep everyone in character. I will not try to remember the plot. (It's been half a decade! There is no hope.) Please inspire me. Ask me for things. Be selfish! I permit it.

I do not deserve reviews anymore, but greatly appreciate them.

Lastly, if you are an original reader, you've made my life! You've probably made all 9 of my lives. I can not thank you enough.


End file.
